RUDE DENIAL
A 72nd-hole mishap hands Takahiro Hataji victory at the New Zealand Open presented by Sky Sport.
Australia’s Scott Hend was denied an 11th victory on the Asian Tour after he missed a three-foot putt on the 18th at Millbrook Resort, outside Queenstown, and handed Takahiro Hataji the accolade of being the first Japanese to win New Zealand’s national open.
Hataji’s inspired performance saw him fire a bogey-free final round of four-underpar 67 for a four-round total of 17-under, while Hend shot a 69. Australians Anthony Quayle (67) and Matthew Griffin (70) plus New Zealand’s Josh Geary (69) tied for third, two behind the champion.
It is one of biggest upset wins in the history of the Asian Tour as Hataji’s best performance to date was a runner-up finish at Kansai Open Golf Championship in Japan.
He started the day one shot behind the leaders and despite his lack of experience he gradually worked his way to the top with two birdies on the front nine, followed by two more on the second half – crucial birdies on 12 and 15 gave him a two-shot lead over the closing stages.
“I was preparing for a play-off,” Hataji said later.
Turning pro in 2104, Hataji becomes the first Japanese player to win on the Asian Tour since Takumi Kanaya at the International Series Oman last year.
If Hend had won, then at the age of 50, he would have become the oldest winner of the event. He does have the consolation of closing the gap on Asian Tour Career Earnings leader Thongchai Jaidee from Thailand. Hend won US$114,289 today and is in second place, just US$280,190 behind, with total earnings of US$5,483,197.
Young Indonesian golfer Jonathan Wijono, who plays on the Asian Development Tour, completed a memorable week, signing for a 68 to finish in a tie for 34th, which helped him and amateur partner Jubilant Harmidy win the Pro-am part of the tournament.
Total prize money this week was NZ$2 million (approximately Us$1.22million). For his victory Hataji received a cheque for US$201,686. The tournament was jointly-sanctioned with the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, in partnership with the Japan Tour.